Only reason I gave 5 stars was for the experience I was 16 yrs old it was the 1st concert of any live band I seen so I'm just saying the experience of 60,000 people was awesome & at least I got to see the Grateful Dead...& just for the record my favorite yr for the band is 1974...I love Portland Oregon 5/19/74....the weather report suite> let it grow>wharf rat is probably my favorite songs just cuz the way it sounds & fits together even though Bobby forgot a few lyrics Donna comes in & saves him

I listen back this morning because i noticed on setlist fm people have been reviewing this as a great show. My mind turns to Jerry as this Sunday morning comes down.
This is painful to listen to and im not certain i will return tobthis again until i listen to every show ive ever attended back to back when and if i ever stop running out the door every chance i get. Im still doing it. Took a long break after this one tho because musically this is about as lackluster and or painful as one could get.
The first set begins w a CRS that is missing the intro here so i will pass over the fact that its not the best. GMLS sounds forced and the ROR is weak as well. IAON picks it up just a bit. A better burst of the energy comes out. But Jerry is not there. Hes hanging in. It was like that until he just gave up and we dont get him for most of set 2. I hate to rag on the man. Hes the best guitarist that ever lived. He gave his all every night. He did it for us. And he suffered for it. Hes suffering here. Carpal tunnel. Drugs for the pain. Vicious cycle. This was a majorly off night.
Any show no matter how good it is almost always has bad moments and the same rule applies to bad shows. We have some fine moments here towards the later parts of the second set.
But to people who feel this is musically a great show wake up and smell the roses. Stop and listen to spring tour same year. The last night at the delta center, the last night at the spectrum , the first night in memphis, tampa. All much better shows than this. Just sayin...

Original post: The entire '95 tour was depressing beyond words. First the ugliness of the scene up in Highgate. Then seeing Jerry so obviously smacked out, tired, and struggling through the Jersey shows. Watching him fight his way through this show I longed for the smiling energetic cherub of a hippie I first saw live in '74. But I persevered hoping for some flashes of the brilliance that was once the norm. But when I walked out of RFK after hearing Brokedown for what was to be the last time, it was all I could do to turn to my touring buddy of 20 years and say, "if Jerry doesn't get help, the bus ride is over." And so it came to pass. As for this show, not the way I wanted my last home state show to be. But I still wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Update: 1st set actually okay. But the 2nd set is horrific. Jerry's guitar is pretty much turned off. Guess Bobby the Bagman let him into his stash during break.

This was the second and last time I saw the Grateful Dead perform. I don't have much positive to say about the show or about the experience I had that night. Disappointment was what I felt most. The first set featured only a couple tunes that I even liked at the time and it was sloppy. The second set was heartbreakingly bad. The official word inside the venue was that there were technical difficulties that were keeping Jerry from being able to play during much of the second set, but one look at him, it was obvious that the problems were internal. I didn't know much about junk at the time though within a year I would be starting my own decades long battle with the garbage, but Jerry was definitely extremely high during this show and was nodding hard when he should've been noodling. I too suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome and can relate to a lot of Jerry's issues with pain and addiction, I can empathize with app that he has to deal with in order to continue to be the man he was. We know enough about him and his life, both public and private, that we should all be able to mentally step into his shoes and understand what it was like for him at this point. He needed rest and he needed to take better care of himself. But he was a vital member of a vast family, dozens if not hundreds of people depended on him a lot more than than the fans did and Jerry being Jerry he was totally aware that there were thousands of us out there as well who depended on him in many ways. He carried that weight and he gave of himself until he brokedown. Nobody in a position to say "enough is enough time to take a year or so off again" did it. It would've worked wonders for him health wise if the band took 1994 off. Think about just how much the previous break did for the band musically. Look how a relaxed performance schedule works wonders for Phil today- that mofo burns the house down every time he gets up on the stage. But histories page is carved in stone and there's no way we will ever kow what couldve been had things gone differently.

The only highlights of the show musically come at the end of the second set, at least for this lifelong Head. Stella Blue and the TS>Lovelight being the best part of the long hot night in the NJ swamplands. The rare GMLS in the first set is sloppy though notable for appearance alone. Bob Dylan who opened, put on a better performance though his voice was totally shot.
Still I am grateful I attended this show. Everytime I meet someone and they say they never saw the band with Jerry I forget just how bad they were by comparison in the spring and summer of 1995 and say there was nothing like a Grateful Dead concert.

Although the 2nd set is mostly pretty terrible, apart from Space which was cool, the 1st kinda holds the show's head above water.

Jerry was extremely sick at this show. You could see by the look on his face during Brokedown Palace that this was the end and he was saying good bye. It was sweet and sad and if you where there than you are a very lucky person, because jerry at his worst is better than no jerry

These Giant stadium shows are terrible. I can't figure out which night was worse. These might be the worst of the tour which means they would be the worst ever, not just by the dead, but by anyone.
Another close contender for worse musical performance ever by anyone is the Knickerbocker arena show during this summer tour.
There is not one good thing to remember from this. If I was there and close enough to the stage, I would have pulled down my pants, took a squat right there on the floor, takin' a shit, picked up that shit with my bare hands, and through it at the stage.
This is a 5 turd performance

BTW, Phil Lesh spoke about this show. He said how they had to remind/tell jerry where he should be. Just listen to The Other One, Throwing Stones. Jerry isn't even playing guitar!!!!
Did you hear that all you morons calling this a good show. Jerry stopped playing. Speaking of throwing shit, all you neo deadheads have shit for brains!

This was my last show as well. After doing mail-order for every east coast tour for years, they sent me 1st Row FLOOR, right in front of Phil. It was a great show at the time...so i'm looking forward to listening to this one. The Other Ones tours...and the Further Shows just were not the same. I really miss the excitement of seeing the band with Jerry. The outside summertime shows have a special place for me. It's great to listen to these and remember. Thanks for posting it.

This was my last show. And during the outro solo of Stella Blue I was touched. Touched by the majestic hand of Jerry. Fare the well........

Don’t know what had me wandering back here tonight. Nostalgia, I suppose. It was my last show out of more than a hundred, spanning 20 years. No complaints here. Why? Because I’ve listened many, many times to this Stella Blue, and beginning at the 7:20 mark I hear Jerry gain strength as he starts to bend notes in that last solo to find the pure tone he always struck. And he then he proceeded to strike more than just a few. And his bandmates were with him every single inch of the way, giving him room but propping him, pulling him, pushing him, and holding him gently just when he needed it. Amazing. Moments like that were what made so many shows memorable for me. And for that reason alone, I’m giving this show my 5 star rating.

This is the only show i have been to. And though it was still an experience id rather listen to the live recordings from other shows.

"There's just the pavement left, and broken dreams..."

RIP, Jerry.

You meant more to me than you'll ever know...

Phil mention's this show in his book he says "while playing to a sold-out crowd of sixty thousand at giants stadium Jerry turned his guitar volume down so low that we were essentially playing without him; on the next night, we had to start "The Other One" without him. both there and in albany he had to be constantly reminded of what tune we were playing.

really sad but i still agree that even though he may not have sounded his best around this time he really poured his emotion into the sad songs Phil also says "His guitar never sounded so pure and touching as it did during so many roads at soldier field he seemed to respond to the slowest and saddest songs"

Although the shows were typical of the Boys in the final 2 years, and by that I mean Jerry being carried and missing lyrics all the time, my friend and Head traveling companion Wally joined Jerry in the hereafter back in 2006. I miss him very much. He was not well the last 8 years of his short life; he was 35 when he passed. I was looking for shows and came across his name on these Giants Stadium recordings. I was standing right next to him both nights, as we did in DC a few weeks later for our final shows. 6/24 and 6/25 were perhaps the best on tour that summer. Either way, I love you Wally.

here it is Zabeth and Mycol,xou, UD
I remember it as one of the best, bcause we were together.peace. all shows I saw were 5 stars folks.UDAVM...

First of all lobster 12 i know you saw tons of shows but you are wrong when it comes to expression. Every night was an expression and if you missed it than you will never get that night back.If the only thing you are rating the show on is the sound then i give it a 2.5 but as an experience then it would be a 5.

I skipped the summer because they didn't play Buckeye lake (my favorite summer venue) and I guess I was getting complacent. I don't remember them sounding so bad that spring...

This was my next to last show, and I went with some friends who brought their very young son. The mother explained that they were bringing their son so that he could witness a Dead show before it was too late. Her actual quote was something like, "I think Jerry's up to his old tricks again"-- and she knew that didn't bode well. I remember Jerry missing a lyric quite glaringly at one point (in the first set, I think) and you could palpably feel the entire audience bottom out. You could also feel Jerry's awareness that everyone had noticed, and he seemed to then at least try to make up for the mistake. Ironically, though this show was flat, it wasn't "bad," like the preceding year's 8/3/94 show-- which had an awful vibe, and very poor playing. So we can look back at this one and think, well, thankfully our friend's 4-year-old son got a chance to witness the Dead live. And what he saw still had some magic. The audience certainly brought its enthusiasm, if not the full band. One more thought: we drove to RFK the next weekend and that show (6/24) was actualy an improvement over this one. '95 was a very up-and-down year. The real question should be why the band insisted on dragging Jerry through it. They ran him into the ground. A shame. (PS: Jerry's vocals on this version of "Ramble On Rose" are surprisingly, unexpectedly strong).

sadly, this was my first and last show.... so to even hear any of this again is amazing bc i cant really say i remember much.

I agree with most on the fact that Jerry seemed displaced and really didn't shine like he did on previous years at Giants stadium. Yeah this was my last show too. I had 5th row right in front of Phil. Yet I'm confused on all the bashing people gave this show. First of all we all knew Jerry was in trouble and yet we still manged to keep the faith, hoping for something to turn his fate around. With that said, why complain about how much you felt let down or got hurt by going to the show. Personally I feel there are some good things to be found here. You just got to listen harder. I screamed out to Phil "song of the saw whet owl" and he smiled back at me and pointed his finger my way saying "You got it" and then they played Unbroken Chain. That to me was a nice way to end it all. I guess I'm lucky to have had that as a lasting impression of the band. Jerry did not leave me with one bad note. I'm thankful to have been there for him. As far as this recording goes I give it a 3. there's better out there.

This show had much potential, but again very typical for '95, the band had to carry Jerry through this performance. This was my last evening with the Grateful Dead, so I obviously hold it close to my heart. Listening to it again is tough on the ears. The first set is decent at best Bobby & Vince (YES VINCE) pour much energy into the vocals & instruments. 'Good Morning little schoolgirl' is a good example. After Cold Rain & Snow though Jerry REALLY struggles in his songs. I had sixth row, floor seats for this one & I remember screaming to Jerry to turn his guitar up during the second set to no avail. How can The Other One be played without him? I vividly remember Phil throwing his hands down by his side in frustration. Even if Jerry had lived I wonder how many more shows like this the band could have endured. Highgate was a mess, 6/18 had many great moments, 6/19 another mess. I recommend this one only if it was your last show & want it for nostalgia's sake, 2 stars for that alone. Fare you well Jerry, we all miss you dearly.
Rob Pervere from Pioneer

Audio is perfection, but may not be the best concert?

Download the FOB "hand-still-sore" show, not the other available version.

Just my short but sweet opinion!

Corrina, Samba, unbroken and matilda comprise the bulk of the second set. Refunds should have been given on the spot.

This was a very depressing show, particularly the second set. I dont' know what it was like on the ground, but in the seats you simply could not hear Jerry's guitar the whole second set. And that's a real drag. But on the shuttle bus back to New York afterwards, my friends and I were talking in the aisle (standing room only on the bus) about not hearing any Jerry in the second half, and most of the kids on the bus seemed to have no idea what we were talking about. They just hadn't noticed that Jerry was essentially missing the whole second set. I found that the most depressing thing of all about this show.

I really think people are too critical of 90s dead. Open your ears and really listen for jerrys guitar, he may be getting old and sick but hes still playing really good music. I would download this show for the ramble on rose alone jerry really plats some good notes. The uncle>river is really good as well.

This was a depressing way to bid goodbye to Jerry. He was clearly sick and had turned his guitar down so low during the second set you could barely hear him. Unbroken Chain with no Jerry? A bummer. Don't bother downloading unless you're a masochist.

My last show...

Everybody in my section commented at one point or another that Jerry was not long for this world. It couldn't have been more obvious during Wharf Rat... and there are jumbo-screens at Giants Stadium, so everyone could see his face close-up.

But what could we do? We wanted to walk out, baffled by the cheers we were hearing while Jerry was literally & figuratively "dying" right before our eyes, but how do you leave someone who has been such big part of your life, fo sooo long?

Some folks left, some (myself included) stayed for the encore. "Brokedown" was as apt as could be, and somewhat redeeming musically. My friends & I left with a heavy heart, but with those beautiful Hunter lyrics ringing in our ears.

Somehow, I was still suprised when Jerry passed. I, like all of you, miss him dearly. But not as much as the folks who walked out early...

Firstly, this source I think is slightly better than the other one listed. This version does have a lot more crowd noise etc, but it is also a brighter clearer and closer sound compared to the other more distant muffled one.

Performance wise, this gets off to an uneasy start, Garcia managing to mess up the Cold Rain solo quite significantly. The first set on the whole is never-the-less not so bad, with Schoolgirl, Ramble on Rose and It's All Over Now being quite listenable. Lazy River road on the other hand is particularly weak, and Don't Ease is just not what it used to be.

Unfortunately the entire second set is very uninspiring and rather dull. Even Phil sounds down tonight with a rather placid Unbroken Chain. Corrina is perhaps the highlight of the set, with Bobby trying in vain to rock some energy into the band, though a rather half-assed Matilda, making it's final appearence, dampens the mood again. After Drums/Space it goes slowly downhill some more, culminating in a VERY sloppy Throwing Stones. Brokedown isn't too bad, but you get the feeling they're just relieved to be finishing up. Not the worst show, and I've heard Jerry playing worse, but this one is just very lacking in something.